This application is a continuation application of U.S. Ser. No. 12/008,812 which was filed on Jan. 14, 2008 and is still pending. That application in turn claims priority from U.S. Ser. No. 60/880,853 which was filed on Jan. 16, 2007 and U.S. Ser. No. 60/997,789 which was filed on Oct. 5, 2007.
The present development concerns a security system employed in point of sale merchandising.
In self service retail establishments, such as drug stores, grocery stores and the like, articles are usually displayed for sale on racks consisting of vertically spaced shelves on which the articles are arranged in rows. Although merchandise in such retail environments in accessible substantially only from the front, the shelves previously employed have permitted free access to the space above the merchandise held on each shelf. In this way, a person who wished to do so could very quickly and easily remove a large number of articles at one time. It is known for thieves to “sweep” a shelf with their arm, collecting the items into a purse, bag or coat very quickly and exit a store, without drawing attention to themselves. This is particularly a problem with high value goods, such as razor blades, pharmaceuticals, batteries, cigarettes, perfumes and the like. A thief could steal as much as several hundred dollars worth of merchandise with very little effort and without great risk of being detected. Similar theft problems exist for merchandise displayed on hooks mounted on pegboards or the like.
There have been some attempts at minimizing such shoplifting losses by the expedient of partially blocking access to display shelves to prevent a mass removal of articles from the shelves, but, nevertheless, permitting removal of individual articles by a shopper.
One attempt to minimize pilferage of merchandise was by installing a transparent panel in front of each stocked shelf, but blocking access to all but a few of the articles on the shelf. However, if the panel is securely fixed in place on the rack or shelf, the panel also prevents or impedes a restocking of the shelves. Considering the value of a clerk's time, such a security system may cost more in terms of personnel time than the money it saves in reducing theft. On the other hand, if the panel is easily removed or readily moved out of the way, that is, if the manipulations needed for moving the panel out of the way are readily apparent from inspection, then the panel has little value as a security device. Another important consideration is that the security device should be inexpensive and be capable of quick and easy installation.
One attempt to solve the theft problem has been the use of dispensing display cabinets which can be stocked through a lockable door at the rear of the cabinet. Such an arrangement, however, is unsuitable for the shelving commonly used in retail establishments, as well as for peg board displays similarly used in such establishments. Another attempt, as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,807,779, employs a transparent front wall which leaves the bottom row of product exposed, together with a sliding door that has a pair of spaced access openings, each affording access to one row of product. While this is an adequate solution for the problem of theft, this design necessitates the provision of a separate size of display unit for each size of goods meant to be sold. For every type of merchandise having another shape or configuration, a different size of door and/or opening would be necessary.
Another design employs a hood or cover which can be mounted above a row of product, so as to impede a thief's ability to grab more than one product at a time from a row of products. However, with this design, a separate such member is necessary for each row of product on each shelf. Moreover, the member is only engageable with a particular type of display unit, in this case, one mounted on a rectangular bar. Such a design is illustrated in U.S. Pat. No. 5,665,304.
Still another design employs a pair of retaining walls, wherein a first retaining wall is shorter in height than is a second retaining wall. This design, illustrated in U.S. Patent Publication 2005/0161420, is said to result in limiting access to product and inhibiting the removal of numerous products at one time. As with the previous design, however, this design necessitates the use of separate second barriers for each row of products and the second barriers may impede access to products more than customers are willing to put up with.
It would be desirable to provide a merchandise security system which will inhibit access to a shelf or pegboard display in such a way as to retard the ability of a thief to “sweep” the shelf or pegboard display. At the same time, the merchandise should be accessible to shoppers to allow the legitimate purchase of products. Also, the shelf or pegboard display needs to be accessible to store personnel to allow a restocking of merchandise in a row of the shelf or on a pegboard hook in a prompt and efficient manner.
Accordingly, there is a need for a new and improved shelf security device or system which overcomes certain difficulties with prior art designs, while providing better and more advantageous overall results.